[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 70 (Monday, April 28, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2589-S2590]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       BUSINESS BEFORE THE SENATE

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, we are kicking off the week today with a 
vote on a former colleague of ours, David Perdue, to be Ambassador to 
China. We will be working through several other Ambassador nominations 
this week, including our Ambassador to our close friend and ally Great 
Britain.
  I don't need to tell anybody that it is important to have these 
individuals in place. We are going to continue to confirm the 
President's Ambassadors as expeditiously as possible.
  We are also going to continue to focus on filling out the rest of the 
President's administration. The President needs to have his team in 
place so that he can do the job he was elected to do. I intend to make 
sure that happens as quickly as possible.
  We have already set a brisk pace on nominations, confirming more than 
50 to date. We are going to have a lot more nominees coming out of 
committee. I want to make it very clear that we are going to process 
those nominees in a timely fashion. As I have

[[Page S2590]]

said before, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. But one way 
or another, we are going to get it done. The President needs to have 
his team in place, and we have a lot of other work to do.
  Speaking of some of that other work, before Easter, the House and the 
Senate took a major step forward on a permanent extension of tax relief 
for American families by passing a budget resolution that will allow us 
to proceed to a final bill. We have been working toward the text of 
this final bill for months, and drafting has only accelerated since 
passage of the budget resolution. I am looking forward to the House and 
the Senate taking up the final legislation.
  Mr. President, there is a lot on the line here. The tax relief the 
Republicans passed in 2017, which puts more money in Americans' 
pockets, is set to expire at the end of this year. Without 
congressional action, in 2026, tax rates will increase, the child tax 
credit will be cut in half, and the standard deduction will be nearly 
halved. Americans making less than $400,000 a year would see a $2.6 
trillion tax hike, and a typical family of four making $80,000 would be 
sending an additional $1,700 to Uncle Sam. Republicans do not intend to 
let that happen. Our final bill will not only extend the 2017 tax 
relief for hard-working Americans, it will make it permanent.

  In addition to permanent tax relief, our final legislation will 
invest in our border, energy, and national security. All three have 
suffered in recent years under the Biden administration, and 
Republicans are committed to securing our border, unleashing America's 
abundant energy resources, and ensuring that our military has the 
resources it needs to deter and defeat any threat.
  Finally, our legislation will also include substantial savings 
measures as we take a hard look at how we spend taxpayer dollars and 
work to get our country on a more sustainable fiscal path.
  Work on drafting this legislation continues. As we consider 
nominations, measures to repeal burdensome Biden administration 
regulations, and other legislation on the floor, off the floor, we are 
getting ever closer to a final bill. It is going to be great.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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